The Middle Belt Forum on Wednesday endorsed Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s (LP) presidential candidate, as their candidate for the 2023 elections.
The forum also stated that it was supporting Obi’s campaign because it believed in “fairness, equity, and justice.”
This information was provided by Dr. Pogu Bitrus, chairman of the Forum and middle belt convener for OBIDATTI 2023, during the announcement of Peter Obi and Yusuf Datti as their candidates for the 2023 presidential election at the Rwang Pam Township Stadium in Jos, the capital of the Plateau State.
“We are here to inform Nigerians that the Middle Belt completely supports Peter Obi for the president in 2023,” Bitrus added.
“We didn’t just come to this conclusion out of sentiment; rather, it was the result of careful deliberation with the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the Afenifere, and the Niger Delta Forum, among other sociocultural organisations in Nigeria.
“We support the zoning that we initiated in 1999 and which gave birth to the President from the South West. Due to the question of equality, justice, and fairness, it is advantageous for us.
“This time, we have a President from the North and by 2023, Buhari would have served 8 years, and it is the turn of the South,” he claimed.
Obi, the LP presidential candidate, vowed to ensure security and encouraged Nigerians to pray for a peaceful election in his remarks.
“We want to let you know that it is your chance to retake Nigeria in 2023, not anyone else’s.
“As we begin the campaign today, I ask that you pray for Nigeria, for a peaceful election, and for a free and fair election because the suffering is too great.
“Now that the campaigns have begun, they will come to split your money, that money is your own and that is why you are hungry, there is no food, there is no security, and there is no employment,” he claimed.
But we can assure you that we’re coming to Nigeria to fight hunger and offer security.
.The period of making excuses and playing the blame game is over, he informed the crowd, and if they are elected into office in 2023, they will match words with action.
Prophet Isa El-Buba, the convener of the Initiative for Better and Brighter Nigeria (IBBN), exhorted the populace in his speech to vote for Peter Obi in order to reclaim their inheritance and to reject those who had made significant sacrifices with their blood and wealth.
Insisting that the Middle Belt and the North will rally around Peter Obi to win the president, he urged the populace to cast their PVCs and cast a sizable number of votes for him.
